Philosophy in academics is often under attack by critics who think the subject is of minimal value, and philosophers are wrongly left in a position of having to defend its importance. It wasn't always this way. Throughout the Middle Ages (500-1500 AD) Ancient Greek philosophy, primarily Plato and Aristotle, was of pivotal importance. Students in the medieval university were often required to learn aspects of Platonic and Aristotelian philosophy, which made up the core of medieval trivium (a division of liberal arts). Furthermore, the doctrines of Plato and Aristotle were of considerable relevance to the medieval catholic church. Wise men of council interpreted the doctrines of Plato, and later Aristotle, as being consistent with scripture, and philosophy had much to do with influencing and shaping the outlook of the church.
In modern times, attitudes toward philosophy are a bit different, and most people have no clue what to think of philosophy--"yeah, that one guy, Soh-Crates. Yeah, I know him." Philosophy has become, probably more than ever, an esoteric subject confined to college academics. The general public is never exposed to much more than the word "philosophy" and is thoroughly ignorant of philosophical methods and concerns.
When I tell people I have a degree in philosophy, the first thing they ask is: "What are you going to do with that?" This translates into: "How can you make money with that?" Philosophy isn't going to land you on any specific career path, but it looks good on a resume. This, however, is not a proper outlook from my point of view. Philosophy is, like what Aristotle says about happiness, not a means to an end, but an end in itself. This is probably confusing to the modern mind because means TO ends are what we are taught to value in the western world. Working to earn money and earning money to buy things and subsist is what consumes much of our short lives.
To understand what I mean by something being an end in itself, let's consider happiness. Everybody wants happiness because it is, as Aristotle would put it, the highest good. Happiness is the highest good because it is good to have happiness for its own sake and not for any other reason. Money, on the other hand, is not good in itself because it is useless if not used to achieve some other end, namely buying things. And buying things is not an end in itself because we buy things, at least some of us, because we think it will make us happy.
Many philosophers would argue that philosophy is a means to finding truth, so truth would be the end in itself, not philosophy. I am not opposed to this view. However, truth is a fuzzy topic, and I'm not so sure philosophers, or anyone else for that matter, have ever discovered truth, no matter how much they think they have. I am probably wrong about this, and I hope, one day, to agree with the other philosophers. I do think, however, that studying philosophy has some very important side effects.
Philosophy has made me more intuitive and has increased my awareness of the external world around me and of the internal realm of the mind. It has forced me to always question everything and not take anything for granted. Philosophy has taught me to always follow the argument wherever it leads. It has imbued me with a love of wisdom and understanding. It has shown me to be more tolerant towards uncomfortable ideas and to be kind to others. Above all, it has given me the ability to appreciate things as they are in themselves--to not look beyond what's right in front of me. Because what's right in front of me may be the highest good of all.
